


Across Time

by believesinponds



Series: ColdWave Week 2016 [6]
Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: F/F, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Timers, Soulmates, Time Travel, len and mick meet in 1975, wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-24
Updated: 2016-06-07
Packaged: 2018-05-28 21:15:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6345532
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/believesinponds/pseuds/believesinponds
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Len’s Timer is blank. Not a series of zeroes like those of a Missed Match. Just eight dashes where numbers should be.</p><p>Then he joins a team of <i>Legends</i> and everything changes.</p><p>[ColdWave Week - Day 6: Soulmates]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Timer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is from Len's POV. We will also see Lisa's and Mick's POVs. Maybe Sara, if this thing gets away from me. (Let's be real, here. It probably will.)

Len’s Timer had always read --:--:--:--. When he first got the Mark at five years old the matchmaker had been subjected to a formal investigation. Three subsequent Matchmakers did the ceremony over the next two weeks and the mark remained unchanged. He never developed the typical zeroes that indicated a Missed Match. No, just dashes where numbers should be and a team of very confused doctors.

He wore a cuff at all times, one that his mother helped him pick out, but it didn’t matter. The teachers knew and the kids overheard and Len only got two days of peace before the taunts began.

He learned quickly that a kid couldn’t tease you if their face was pressed into the dirt.

Over the years his reputation followed him. There were always rumors, but nobody dared to ask him about his Timer or anything else.

When their mother died and his father started hitting Lisa, Len dropped out of school and joined the family business.

It helped, but not enough.

On Lisa’s fourteenth birthday Lewis was arrested for the second time and Len was granted custody.

(Raising Lisa was easy--he had been raising her since the day she was born.)

Lisa inevitably got involved in the family business, too, and although Len wanted better for her he was proud of her quick thinking and her attention to detail. She was an asset to his team every time and it was fun spending time with his sister.

Even when she went away to college they would plan a heist together at least once a year.

When the Flash showed up, Len acquired a cold gun. When his gun was destroyed, he kidnapped the engineer and convinced him to build a new one.

“Don’t I get a gun, Lenny?”

Len smiled at the engineer and told him to make a gun for his sister, too.

“Something pretty and toxic,” Lisa added.

Their new guns and the knowledge of the Flash’s secret identity gave them free reign over the city. They could flawlessly pull off heists and the Scarlet Speedster would leave them alone as long as there weren’t any fatalities.

Lewis was the only exception to that rule.

Len went to prison, but not for long. Lisa broke him out and they went about their business.

***

“Stop obsessing over it, Lis.”

Lisa looked up from her wrist with a frown. “It’s almost time, Lenny.”

“Three days, seven hours, nineteen minutes and…” he ticked his head to the side. “Forty-six seconds.”

Len didn’t have a non-stop timer tattooed to his wrist, but he had a brain for counting seconds that was unrivaled.

Lisa just rolled her eyes and went back to watching the tattoo count down.

“Got something fun planned for us. It should be a pretty easy score if we pull it off right.”

“I’m sure we’ll pull it off just fine,” Lisa said, her eyes still glued to her wrist.

“What, you don’t even want to know what we’re stealing?”

She sighed and tore her gaze away from the timer, raising an eyebrow. “What are we stealing, Lenny?”

“Gold.”

Lisa’s grin rivaled his own.

***

The heist went just as planned. They slid into the minivan, Lisa in the driver’s seat, and pulled away with the cops hot on their tail.

Len wasn’t worried. Lisa was an excellent driver, she would lose the cops easily once they got into some traffic. And they still had three hours, forty-three minutes, and...eighteen seconds before she was supposed to come in contact with her soulmate.

Plenty of time to stash the loot and go somewhere to celebrate.

“I want to go somewhere nice, Lenny!” she shouted over the noise from the sirens. “I don’t want to meet my soulmate at some sleazy bar!”

“We can go wherever you want, Sis, as long as you get us away from these badges!”

Lisa laughed and shot him a look. “What? You don’t trust me, Big Bro?”

But just as he was about to respond, Len caught sight of a man standing in the middle of the road. He fist clenched and he shouted, “Lisa! Watch it!”

Then everything went white.

***

Len wasn’t a hero. He didn’t care about saving some unknown future.

But time travel sounded...intriguing. There were a few things in his past that he could stand to change. Things that would not only improve his life, but Lisa’s, too.

Still, he wasn’t planning on accepting the invitation until he noticed the clock on Lisa’s wrist.

Four minutes, fifty-three seconds.

That was hardly enough time to get to a reputable bar.

Lisa had seemed to come to the same conclusion. To an outsider she probably looked like she was paying rapt attention to Rip Hunter’s case for becoming _legends_. Len could see the way her eyes kept darting down, though, and he knew she was counting the seconds in her head.

Len watched Rip hand a small card to Stein. “If your answer is yes, meet me at this address in thirty-six hours.”

One minute, thirty-seven seconds.

Len found himself eyeing the others, wondering which one of them was destined to be with his baby sister. Lisa had a frown on her face and was carefully staring at her hands. Stein and the new kid--Len hadn’t caught his name--were talking with the two who were apparently reincarnated lovers. The guy with the haircut was listening in. None of them looked like they were going to break off any time soon, which left…

“Sara Lance.” She held out her hand with a smirk. “I’ve heard some interesting things about you, Leonard.”

Twenty-seven seconds.

Len raised an eyebrow and shook her hand. “Pleasure.”

Twenty-one.

“And who is your lovely friend?”

Thirteen.

“Lisa Snart.” Len watched his sister take in a deep breath and then hold out her hand. “Lenny’s sister.”

Sara hummed and licked her lips appreciatively.

Len scowled.

Five. Four. Three.

Her hand inched forward.

Two.

Lisa’s eye twitched.

One.

Their skin touched. Both girls gasped.

Sara raised an eyebrow and turned Lisa’s wrist in hers, examining the timer that was now counting up.

Len left them alone to get acquainted.

***

Two days later, they showed up at the address on Rip’s card.

Being on a time-traveling spaceship was…really cool. Len tried not to let his awe show too much, but inside he was flashing back to the time he dressed up and stood in line to see _Return of the Jedi_. His inner nerd was definitely excited.

Lisa and Sara were smiling at each other across the console and Len nudged his sister with a roll of his eyes. They had a quick and silent stare-down before Lisa gave in. She patted his shoulder and crossed the room to sit by her new soulmate.

The actual traveling through time was hell. His insides felt like they were being simultaneously compacted and torn apart and his ears were ringing at a frequency that he hadn’t experienced before. When the ship settled and the metal harnesses went up, Len closed his eyes tight and shook his head. He felt a strange sensation swoop over his body, almost like an itch.

He scratched his wrist absentmindedly and frowned.

Rip was talking but Len didn’t pay too much attention until Lisa said, “What, we aren’t invited?”

“I thought we were a team!” Sara said, her voice full of protest.

Len rolled his eyes when Rip fed them a line about not requiring their particular skillset for this mission.

“Meaning you don’t need anyone killed, maimed, or robbed,” he said, tilting his head.

“Precisely.”

The rest of the team, minus the kid, left with Rip.

“Am I the only one on this ship who could really use a drink?” Sara asked, shooting a sly look at Lisa. “I say we go get weird in the 70s.”

Lisa grinned.

“Excellent idea,” Len said.

Sara was grinning now, too. “I have the perfect outfit.”

***

A good old-fashioned bar fight was just what Len needed to get his blood pumping. They could’ve handled the drunken assholes just fine on their own, but when one of the other men joined in with a smashed-up barstool, Len didn’t complain.

Things were going beautifully. He had landed several swings and knocked the wind out of a guy with a punch to the gut. Just as he was about to turn around and kick another guy behind the knees, something strange caught his eye.

Time slowed down as Len focused in on his wrist. The cuff he usually sported had fallen off, and in place of the dashes were actual numbers.

Six seconds.

He barely had time to register the fact that he had a soulmate and that the person was here, probably participating in this bar fight, when a fist came slamming into his face.

***

Len woke to someone slapping his cheek. He squeezed his eyes shut with a groan and then snapped them open when he realized where he was.

“What the--” he said, pushing himself into a sitting position.

A hand slowed his movements but didn’t restrain him.

“Easy there, buddy,” came an unfamiliar voice. It was low and gruff and it sent a shiver up Len’s spine.

He sat up carefully, surprised to find the man who had joined in on the fight. He was broadly built, his head completely shaved, and he wore clothes that were fairly nondescript.

Len couldn’t take his eyes off him.

“Mick here scared the rest of those guys off,” Sara said from somewhere to his left.

The man-- _Mick_ , apparently--grunted. “Woulda been easier if pretty boy here knew how to duck.”

Len blinked.

Mick grimaced, his hand hovering over Len’s face. “Sorry ’bout that.”

“Lenny,” Lisa’s voice this time. He dragged his eyes away from the man and looked at her. She seemed worried. “Are you okay?”

He glanced down at his wrist.

Ten minutes, thirty-six seconds. Thirty-seven. Thirty-eight.

Lisa gasped.

“What?” Sara asked.

“His wrist. Look at his wrist!”

Len could feel them all staring.

“Ten minutes? That was right in the middle of the fight. Do you think--?”

“It was me,” Mick said. “When I punched him. It was me.”

Silence.

“O-kay. We’re just gonna, um--” Lisa began.

“Yeah. We’ll be at the booth.”

Len didn’t respond.

Neither did Mick.

They were quiet for another minute, watching the numbers count up on Len’s wrist, before Mick spoke.

“I never got one.”

Len looked up. “You didn’t?”

“Parents couldn’t afford a Matchmaker. By the time I got older I figured it didn’t really matter.”

Len didn’t know what to say to that. When he was younger he thought that he was too damaged to have a soulmate. Now that he was a little wiser, he thought that the system was flawed. But there had still been that little part of him that believed he was the odd man out for a reason.

And now...he apparently had a soulmate.

In 1975.

 _Shit_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is so late but I couldn't help it!!! I wanted to keep it as a one-shot but it just kept getting LONGER. So I'm posting it in parts. The next installment should be up fairly soon.
> 
> Visit the [ColdWave Week blog](http://coldwaveweek.tumblr.com) for more Mick/Len fics and fanworks from seriously awesome creators.


	2. Counting Up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time for Sara's point of view! This fic may end up being four chapters instead of three...we'll see :)

Sara was surprised to see a couple of villains on the rooftop listening to Rip Hunter’s proposition. Not that she was necessarily opposed to a little villainous behavior every now and again, but she liked to consider herself a moral grey-area.

Perhaps these villains saw themselves the same way.

After the speech about saving the future and becoming _Legends_ with a capital “L,” Sara made her way over to the duo. Leonard Snart, also known as Captain Cold, had his arms crossed and was frowning at the group. His sister, most commonly known as Golden Glider, was leaning against a large metal box and frowning at the ground.

Fun bunch.

Sara held out her hand and introduced herself. “I’ve heard some interesting things about you, Leonard.”

He raised an eyebrow and drawled, “Pleasure.”

The corner of her mouth tugged into a smirk. She glanced over at his sister and raised an eyebrow of her own. “And who is your lovely friend?”

Golden Glider let out a sigh and tossed her hair over her shoulder. Then she took a deep breath, held out her hand, and said, “Lisa Snart. Lenny’s sister.”

Sara grinned. If Lisa Snart was going to be on this trip, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad after all.

She took Lisa’s hand, ready to ask her if she wanted to get a drink, when a shock ran through her body. Her hand tingled and she suddenly felt more _alive_ than ever, even more so than before her death. Sara’s eyes widened as she turned Lisa’s arm and found a Timer on her wrist, counting up. Four seconds. Five. Six. Seven.

She hardly noticed Leonard stalking away.

“Well,” she said, raising her eyes to meet Lisa’s. She tilted her head to the side and smiled softly. “Isn’t that interesting.”

***

“You don't have one?” was the first thing Lisa asked when they slid into a booth at Sara’s favorite local diner.

Sara frowned at the cuff covering her wrist.

“I have one. It's frozen, though.”

She watched Lisa’s eyes narrow and then flick down to the definitely working Timer on her own wrist. Sara sighed and pushed up her sleeve, unbuckling the cuff in one swift motion. Her Timer was stuck on 468 days.

“I don't understand,” Lisa said.

“I died. Got resurrected about a year later. My scientist friends told me it would probably work again if I had the ceremony re-done, but…”

“But you didn't want to answer a bunch of Matchmakers’ questions.”

Sara let out a breath. “Exactly.”

Lisa took Sara’s hand in her own, cradled it gently, and ran a thumb over the frozen numbers on her wrist. “You died? How...why didn’t mine stop, too?”

Sara tilted her head and frowned. “I don’t know. That’s strange, isn’t it?”

“So is getting resurrected a year after your death.”

Sara laughed. “True. Not even Jesus got to do that.”

Her soulmate’s laugh lit up her whole face.

They talked well into the night. There wasn’t time to get to know everything, but they started with the basics. Sara talked about her training as an assassin and the events leading up to her death. Lisa talked about being raised by her brother and the absolute relief that came when he took care of their father.

When the sun rose they parted ways only because Sara wanted to return to Star City and talk to her sister before taking off in a time machine.

There was no question in her mind about _if_ she would go.

***

The actual time travel was pretty awful.

Sitting next to Lisa made it a little better, though.

She was disappointed to learn that Rip Hunter only wanted them around for their criminal skills, but if they were stuck in 1975 they sure as hell weren’t going to spend it on a ship.

Once the rest of the team had gone off on their mission, Sara turned to Lisa with a grin. “Am I the only one on this ship who could really use a drink?” She winked. “I say we go get weird in the 70s.”

She was dancing with Lisa, spinning her around with a huge grin, when a large man approached them.

“You girls lookin’ for a good time?”

Sara rolled her eyes. “No thanks.”

The man didn’t seem to appreciate her rejection. “I got a car in the parking lot with a roomy back seat. Why don’t I show you two how to really have fun?” He reached out and grabbed Lisa’s arm.

That was a mistake.

Before she really knew what she was doing, Sara had twisted the man’s arm behind his back and was growling into his ear. “You keep your damn hands off my soulmate.”

And then all hell broke loose.

Lisa was holding her own just fine. Sara threw a few punches and pulled off a pretty cool roundhouse kick, if she did say so herself. Even Leonard threw their beers to the floor and joined in on the fight. It was chaotic in the best way, and Sara’s friends seemed to agree.

Then Leonard took a punch to the face and fell to the ground.

The guy who hit him looked horrified. He stared at his fist for a full five seconds, stared like it held the secrets to the universe, and then he let out an enraged roar and dove toward the last few stragglers, fists swinging.

The men ran out of the bar before he could land a single punch.

“Whoa. Easy there, big guy,” Sara said, holding her hands up when he spun around to face her. “Thanks for your help. Name’s Sara.”

He grunted and shook her proffered hand. “Mick.” Then he dropped down next to Leonard and studied his face in concern. “I didn’t mean to hit ‘im,” he said to Lisa, who was running her hand over her brother’s hair.

“He’ll be fine. He’s had worse.”

***

Apparently, Mick was Leonard’s _soulmate_.

Wasn’t that interesting?

“His Timer has always been...different,” Lisa explained.

“Like a Missed Match?”

“No.” Lisa frowned, propping her chin on her fist. “It was just blank. A bunch of dashes. Nobody could ever figure out why.”

Sara hummed. “Apparently because his soulmate was forty years too early.”

Lisa bit her lip. “But Lenny’s alive right now. He’s only five years old, but he’ll be getting his Timer any day now. Why wouldn’t it just...count down from there?”

“I don’t know.” Sara looked at her own frozen Timer and then reached out to take Lisa’s free hand. She swiped her thumb over the numbers, which were nearing on forty-two hours now. “Maybe Rip will have an idea. This can’t be the first time someone’s met their soulmate in the past, right?”

Lisa glanced over at Leonard and frowned. “I suppose not. Seems like it could get really complicated, though.”

Sara watched as Mick hauled Leonard to his feet and touched the bruise that was blooming on his cheek. Leonard didn’t flinch away, but his shoulders were tense and there was an unreadable look on his face. Mick said something that made the corner of Leonard’s mouth twitch up in what Sara was counting as a smile. He said something back, tilted his head to the side, and then shifted his gaze to their booth.

“Think he’s gonna tell him about the time travel?” Sara asked, turning back to her own soulmate.

“I’m not sure there’s any way to avoid it.”

The men were making their way over. Sara switched into the seat next to Lisa, leaving one side of the booth free. She shot a wink at Leonard, who rolled his eyes.

“You boys want a round of drinks?” she called when they were close enough to hear.

“I think we’re gonna pass,” Leonard said. “There’s something that Mick needs to see, and I’d rather we both be sober for it.”

“Ew, Lenny!” Lisa scrunched her nose (which was too damn cute to be allowed). “I do not want to hear about _that_.”

Leonard actually blushed. “Not what I was talking about, _sis_. Although I’m hoping we share similar thoughts on _that_.”

Mick grimaced.

She wasn’t sure what to make of that.

“So what exactly does he need to see?” Lisa asked.

He raised an eyebrow. “I think it would be prudent to show him our...mode of transportation.”

Sara laughed. “Guess that answers that question.”

***

It was kind of fun, watching two middle-aged men get all blushy every time their arms brushed or they caught each other staring. They were so caught up in themselves that they didn’t seem to notice that the group had stopped in a grassy clearing.

Sara cleared her throat.

“Ah. Here we are,” Leonard said, throwing a glare back at Sara.

“Thought you were showing me some kind of car.”

“Not a car,” Lisa said, approaching the spot where the Waverider was parked. “More like a...ship.”

Mick just stared at her.

“Come on.” Sara linked her arm through Mick’s and led him toward Lisa. “You’ll understand when you’re inside.”

Mick turned to look at Leonard, his forehead creased with confusion. Leonard shrugged. “She’s right. I think you’ll have to see it to believe it.”

The hatch opened up before them, startling a grunt out of Mick, and then Sara tugged him on board.

“This ain’t a ship. This is some kind of _spaceship_ ,” Mick said, taking in the metal hallway and futuristic technology.

“Well you’re not wrong,” Leonard muttered.

Mick gave him a funny look. “You tellin’ me you’re some kind of alien?”

Lisa snorted. “You do sort of have that look about you, Lenny.”

“ _What_ is going on here?” Cloak billowing in the wind created by his dramatic entrance, Rip stood with his hands on his hips and a scowl on his face. “We cannot bring locals on board, Mister Snart. Do you _want_ to create an anomaly?”

“Hey!” Mick stepped forward, his fists clenched and ready for a fight. “What’s your problem, you no-good piece of--”

Leonard’s voice was sharp but not unkind. “ _Mick_. That’s enough. Captain Hunter here isn’t aware of the...special circumstances.”

“There are absolutely _no_ circumstances in which it would be acceptable to--”

Leonard sighed and tugged his sleeve up, showing Rip the timer on his wrist, counting up from thirty-two minutes. “He’s my soulmate.”

Rip’s mouth hung open. He blinked a few times and then frowned. “Very well. But this complicates things, and we cannot afford distractions, Mister Snart.”

“You guys planning an invasion or something?” Mick asked. He didn’t seem opposed to the idea.

“We’re not aliens,” Sara said, linking her arm through Lisa’s.

“We’re time travelers,” Lisa said with a wink.

Mick raised an eyebrow. “I see. That’s...interesting.”

“Come on,” Leonard said, grabbing Mick’s arm and pulling him toward the residential wing. “I’ll explain everything.”

“They’re not gonna get much explaining done,” Sara muttered.

Lisa elbowed her in the gut, her face twisted in disgust. “That’s my _brother_.”

Sara laughed and wrapped an arm around her waist. “Sorry, darling.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time for Mick's POV!
> 
> (Thanks a bunch to _punk-rock-yuppie_ and my wife _coopbastian_ for betaing!)

Mick was a little disappointed to hear that there wouldn’t be an invasion. All he wanted from this world was to watch it burn, and an alien attack seemed like a pretty good way to accomplish it. Still, he was fascinated by the idea of time travel. And spaceships. And his _soulmate_.

Len led him to a small room with chrome paneling and moving pictures in the wall. There was a large bed, a shelf lined with books, and a comfortable-looking seating area.

Mick fell into one of the chairs.

“So. Time traveler, huh? Is this your TARDIS?”

Len snorted. “Something like that. You don’t seem too surprised about it.”

Mick shrugged, grinning at the man as he lowered himself carefully into the other chair. “Didn’t expect to meet my soulmate. Time travel is a lot less surprising than that.”

“Tell me about it,” Len muttered.

There was a brief silence, not awkward but not exactly comfortable, before Mick said, “Where are you from?”

“Central City.” Len smirked.

Mick huffed. “ _When_ are you from?”

“Originally, 1970. But we’re traveling from 2016.”

“1970? So you’re tellin’ me there’s a five-year-old Leonard Snart runnin’ around out there somewhere?”

“Indeed there is. I plan on paying him a visit before we leave.”

Mick narrowed his eyes. Before they _leave_. Len didn’t belong in 1975, not this version of him. Of course he would be going back to his own time.

“Why are you traveling through time anyway?”

“Well, that’s...a bit of a story.”

Crossing his arms over his chest, Mick said, “I’ve got time, buddy.”

So Len told him about the immortal bad guy named Vandal Savage and his quest to rule the world. Mick’s frown got bigger and bigger as the story went on. This was definitely not an invasion--it was a rescue mission.

His soulmate was some kind of _hero_.

“Wouldn’ta pegged you for the goody-two-shoes type, Len.”

Len snorted. “I ain’t in this for the _rewarding feelings_. Only interested in a good score.” Len smirked and Mick relaxed. “That isn't gonna be a problem for you, is it, Mick?”

Mick unfolded his arms and leaned forward, his elbows resting against the table. “Nah, buddy. That's just fine.”

***

Mick found that he was quite the commodity on the _Waverider_ (stupid name for a space/time ship, if you asked Mick--not that anybody ever asked Mick). Having a local on board was apparently nothing new, but word spread quickly that he was Leonard Snart’s soulmate and _that_ was Big News.

“It has happened before, of course,” the captain said when the old guy asked about it. “It's rare, but there have been instances of time travelers who have met their soulmates in a different era.”

“And what happens to the pairs when the time traveler must depart?”

Mick tensed his shoulders.

“Ah, well, Martin...that is an interesting question, isn't it?”

 _And that wasn't an answer at all_ , Mick thought to himself.

He didn't look to see Len’s reaction.

***

Turned out the captain hadn’t exactly been forthright with the crew. Mick grinned when the hawk girl punched the captain’s jaw. Then he grinned again when blondie punched him, too. He didn’t care much about lies and manipulation--it was par for the course in his line of work--but it never went over well with those who had been on the receiving end. And Mick could tell that his new soulmate was not happy about being manipulated.

The pretty boy and blondie were talking about destiny and becoming legends. Mick was only half paying attention--he was much more interested in the look on Len’s face. Calculating. It was a look that seemed natural and put-on at the same time. Mick was fascinated by it.

“This mission is about changing the future,” Sara said. Lisa watched her with rapt attention, not unlike the way he had just been studying Len. “And if we have the power to change the world, don’t you think we have the power to change our own fate?”

Len shifted, a smirk forming slowly. “For better or for worse.”

Mick fought off the impulse to frown. He knew Len wouldn’t want to settle down in 1975, but Mick had made the mistake of allowing himself to hope. He was sure Len could score big time with his knowledge of future tech and, shit, they could use that same knowledge to invest in some big company and be fucking _rich_ and live like kings in their own kingdom.

He clenched his fist around the lighter that had somehow appeared in his hand. Something had to burn. Without acknowledging the others he slipped out of the cargo bay and stalked toward Len’s room. There had to be something flammable in there. The door slid open for him and he glanced around--there. A trash can. It looked metallic and it was filled with crumpled up balls of discarded paper.

Perfect.

***

Mick was so entranced with the flame he hardly noticed the door slide open. He could feel his soulmate’s presence, though, thrumming through his veins like a steady second pulse. He kept his eyes glued to the burning trash.

“You have a thing for fire, don’t you?” Len stood in front of him, but Mick didn’t look up.

“Beautiful, ain’t it? Consumes everything in its path. Doesn’t matter what it’s made of, you get a flame that’s hot enough and you can burn _anything_.”

Len hummed but didn’t say more.

Mick appreciated that.

“Shrink says it’s pyromania. Got me into lots of trouble when I was a kid. Still does, sometimes.”

Len shifted his stance. Mick took a second to glance at his face, and once again he looked calculating, staring at Mick’s fire like it held the answer to some important question.

“You know,” Len said, his eyes never leaving the flames.

Mick followed his gaze and watched the fire flicker and dance.

Len’s voice was a drawl. “We could always use an extra person on this mission. Especially someone who isn’t afraid of a little violence.”

Mick held his hand over the flame, heat licking at his palm. “You want me to come with you.”

“If--,” his voice became quieter, more sincere, “--you don’t have anything keeping you in 1975.”

So Len didn’t want to leave him behind. He didn’t want to stay, but he _didn’t want to leave Mick behind_.

Mick grabbed the front of Len’s shirt and tugged him forward, kissing him over the contained flame. The fire licked at his pants, but he didn’t care--Len wanted him to stick around. That was the only thought in his mind.

Len’s kiss was hard and unyielding and Mick gave himself over to it, let himself get lost in the scrape of his teeth and the heat of his tongue. Mick felt like his whole body was on fire from the inside. It was _invigorating_. And there was no doubt in his mind that he would follow Len wherever he decided to go.

***

Rip Hunter didn’t like the idea of Mick traveling with them.

“I just don’t think it’s _prudent_ , Mr. Snart, to get someone from the past involved in our mission.”

Mick was about to cut in, but Lisa beat him to the punch. “Aren’t we _all_ from the past to you, Rip? Why would Mick be any different than the eight of us?”

Rip mumbled something about timelines.

“Look, _Rip_. You want me on your team? Mick comes along,” Len said, that drawl back in his voice.

Lisa cocked her head to the side. “And you know I’m not going anywhere without Lenny.”

The rest of the team turned to look at Sara, who shrugged. “I’m with Glider.”

Rip closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose then turned swiftly, his coat flapping behind him. “ _Fine_. Mr. Rory, as it seems half my team will defect if we leave you behind, I suppose I have no other choice than to let you come with us.”

Mick grunted and leaned a little closer to Len. Rip could pretend that he was _allowing_ Mick to join the team, but Mick knew exactly who called the shots on this ship and it wasn’t the captain.

“So what’s our next move, Rip?”

Gideon spoke up. “We have information that Vandal Savage will likely be at an auction for a nuclear warhead.”

“I suggest you all buckle in. Mr. Rory, I’m afraid we don’t have an extra seat for you.”

Mick snorted and gave him a _look_. “I think I can handle it.”

“Hold on tight.”

***

Mick groaned and rubbed his head where it hit the side of Len’s chair. Len seemed concerned for about a split second and then schooled his features into a frown. “What’s wrong with you?”

“I’ve never been on a plane before. Does it always make you this queasy?”

“An effect of the Waverider, I’m afraid. This was only a small jump--we’ll need to get you a chair before our next trip. Gideon?”

“I’ll work on it, Captain.”

The time-travelers dressed up in clothes that seemed appropriate for a 1975 nuclear warhead auction. Mick didn’t change--he was likely to fit right in anyway. They split up, the loud couple sprouting wings and flying off in bird-like armor. Len bumped into a man and smoothly lifted his identification, and the old professor burst in talking about terrorist attacks that he claimed to orchestrate.

And then they were in.

Mick had never seen such a massive weapon up close. He was distracted thinking of the incredible explosion that would come from such a thing and he didn’t notice the team’s distress until two men were standing in front of them.

The professor let something slip that he clearly hadn’t meant to share, and suddenly they found themselves being attacked on all sides.

“Is there always this much fighting with you guys?” Mick called to Len, who was shooting what looked like ice out of a giant futuristic gun.

“Only on the good days!” Len called back with a grin.

They didn’t quite make it out without incident. The professor and the kid--who could fuse together into an _actual burning man_ \--had to deal with the nuke and Pretty Boy ended up leaving some of his future tech behind by mistake, but after the epic fight Mick was counting it as a win.

“You’ve got some pretty handy guns there,” Mick said, nodding at Len and Lisa while they cleaned out their weapons back on the ship.

“Seriously,” Sara said, folding her arms across her chest. “Where’d you get something like that?”

“What, they’re not common in 2016?” Mick had just assumed that the future included criminals with guns that shot various elements.

“Oh no, these guns are _special made_.” Len grinned. “You know, when I _acquired_ these fine weapons, the dealer tried to sell me one that might be right up your alley, Mick.”

“You think Gideon could replicate it?” Lisa asked, raising an eyebrow at her brother.

“Gideon?”

“I am capable of replicating all technology that exists up to the year 2166.”

Len turned to Mick, his smile morphing into a smirk. “Excellent.”

***

_Back in the year 2016, Cisco Ramon takes inventory of the Star Labs armory. He taps something into his tablet and then gasps. His eyes go wide and he is engulfed in a vision of Captain Cold fighting alongside a new partner, a burly man with a familiar-looking gun that shoots fire. He comes out of the vision with another gasp and then he grins._

_“Heat Wave.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My dearest, darlingest friends. I am done with grad school! (Well, basically done.) Which means that I have more time for writing, and that is a Very Good Thing because this fic? Yeah, it's gonna be much longer than I originally planned. Like, full-length chaptered fic. Probably covering the majority of LoT season one. Sooo, buckle in? I'm working on developing a writing schedule for myself, but you know how these things go. I'll definitely have the next update a lot quicker this time around, though :D
> 
> And if you have questions or would just like to chat about our favorite criminal husbands, come visit me on [tumblr](http://believesinponds.tumblr.com)!


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